Sorrow Shared is Sorrow Halved
by WeasleyTwin1
Summary: It sbout Harry...well it was suppose to be but somehow it turned into a Neville fic. Reand and review.


Sorrow Shared is Sorrow Halved

By: WeasleyTwin1

A flash of green light…familiar green light…a light that streaked past him stunning even his closed eyes. It sped past him, towards another…towards another person…the person that was with him. His body lay there motionless…open, dead eyes gazing…empty eyes…dead eyes…dead…A scream…

Harry woke with a start, he was breathing heavily and his face and the neck of his pajamas were drenched in sweat. He laid back into his pillow with a shuddering sigh and closed his eyes, breathing deep, calming breaths. Sleep would not return to him this night and he knew that all to well. He reached out blindly, past the drawn curtains of his four-poster for his glasses on the nightstand. He put them on and looked around the room, fearing to see concerned and fearful faces from the other beds, but to his relief they were all still fast asleep. Harry closed his eyes, fell back into the safe and comforting mattresses of his bed and swallowed hard, the scream, his scream was only in the dream and had not rung out into the still Hogwarts night.

"The dream," Harry thought, "That Dream.'

He shivered as he drew his covers closer around him, as if their warmth could protect him from the cold darkness of his dream. A dream, which had been haunting his sleeping hours. The dream…of Voldemort's rise and…and Cedric demise.

Harry clinched his blankets even more as he mind replayed those dreadful moments when he was help captive by Voldemort.It was so vivid, even now, in his mind, as if it had just happened second ago and not four months ago as time could tell.

Movement from Ron's bed broke Harry's gaze and he sighed as he watched Ron roll over and begin to snore again. He muttered something in his sleep but it was inaudible. He wished he could be as carefree as Ron. Would these dreams…nightmares ever leave him in peace? He shivered and looked at what would have been skyward if the canopy on the four poster opened into the night instead of closing off all light as tears began to stream silently down his face. These tears were also as regular am occurrence as his nightmares. Nightmares that had plagued his summer holidays…Voldemort's return to power and Cedric's death.

Harry looked down at his hands, which had a death grip on his blankets. His hands were useless…had been useless to save Cedric from that curse.A small portion of his brain tried to tell him that a counter curse was impossible, there was none. He was the only person to have ever survived that curse…The Avada Kedavra Curse…the Killing Curse. There was nothing he could've done to save Cedric.

"Yes, there was," he told that voice, shrilly, "I could've grabbed the Triwizard Cup alone and not forced Cedric to take it with me. I could've pushed him out of the way…I could've…"

"There was nothing you could've done," said a timid voice to his right.

Harry looked and saw Neville's body outlined dimly by the weak moonlight filtering through the window. Harry looked down at his hands again and shrugged but said nothing as Neville sat down next to him.

"It's okay to feel sorrow…pain and fear Harry. Everyone has had pain throughout their lives. Everyone."

Harry didn't know what to say. It was a bit odd hearing words of wisdom coming from Neville's mouth. 

"Besides, you know there really was nothing you could do. That curse has no counter curse. Curses are…" Neville got suddenly quiet and Harry saw him fingering the hem of his pajamas nervously. "Curses are designed to hurt and maim and…and destroy things no matter how much you wish they weren't."

"But, I'm Harry Potter…the great Harry Potter…a hero…" the words died on Harry's lips as he began to cry, he turned away from Neville and wished that he would leave him to his sorrow.

"Sorrow shared is sorrow halved," said Neville.

Harry looked up at Neville through the blur of tears.

"My Mum use to say that…"

Neville looked up at Harry, and then quickly looked away, he sighed and Harry thought he saw a tear rolling down Neville's cheek in the pale light. Harry, put a reassuring hand on his shoulder then for some reason he spoke.

"You're parents…Voldemort too," said Harry in an almost inaudible whisper.

Neville looked a Harry, a cross between shock, grief and the longing to tell what had happened to someone else who might understand. 

"Yes," was all that Neville said for a long time, Harry almost thought that Neville wasn't going to say anything more. He seemed to be seeing something else. Harry recognized the look as the one he must wear when he thought about what happened that night when he still had parents…the night when Voldemort took everything away from him. 

"We were a family again. Dad was home more and we were getting things back together. We should've been a family again. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was gone…thanks to you. His reign of terror was over. Things could go back to the way they were before."

Harry wanted to say something, but he remained silent. Neville stopped again and Trevor leaped into his lap and nudged his hand with his nose. Trevor looked up at Neville with sad eyes.Neville smiled down at Trevor and picked him up and set him in his right arm and petted him. Harry would've laughed, the scene was funny to him, he never knew that a toad could be that expressive, but he remained quiet as Neville continued to absentmindedly pet Trevor. 

"We thought all his supporters were in Azkaban…or returned to our side…we were mistaken…sadly mistaken."

Harry was held spellbound by Neville's voice, a voice so full of sorrow and loss that Harry doubted he would ever forget it. It was a haunted voice, a voice that was seeing another time…another place…another event.

"I can see it all so clearly as if it just happened a second ago and not years."

Trevor gulped loudly and Neville looked down at him, a ghost of a smile on his haunted face. 

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" asked Harry quietly, "We both lost our parents to Voldemort."

Neville looked up at Harry, tears slowly trickling down his face. He sniffed then rubbed his sleeve across his eyes.

"I always felt a kinship to you, Harry. We have something in common," he said as Trevor gulped again, " You've lost your parents totally, body and soul and mine…still have their bodies but their souls are lost forever. Mine might as well be dead."

Harry didn't know any comforting thing to say, he wished he could but he just sat there. 

'I don't remember very much…well I try not to remember it all…We had just left my Gran's after Christmas dinner. We were all so happy…the happiest we had been in years. At dinner we had laughed and joked and my Father even told funny stories about his job as an Auror, which stories about his job were usually never told and they were never funny."

Neville paused a dim smile passed across his features as if he was hearing one of those stories now. He shook his head and continued.

"We were walking home, Floo Powder was, my parents thought too dangerous and Apparation was out of the question so we had walked home. It was only a few blocks…hardly even a ten minute walk. I remember it was snowing…it was beautiful, everything covered in a layer of white and the snow still fell from the sky… 

"We'll be snowed in by morning."

My father had said with a somewhat mischievous glint in his eye. Then he looked down at the snow and back up at Mum and me. Then without warning he picked up some snow formed it into a ball and threw it at us. The he ran and hid behind a small wall on the other side of the street where he began to pelt us with more snowballs. Mum and I shrieked and ran in opposite directions, looking for cover. Once we found cover the real battle began. It was the last memory I had of my parents being happy…of us as a family…and them recognizing me as their son."

Neville stopped, his eyes transfixed to the floor, a solitary tear fell down his face. Trevor jumped down from Neville's arm, gulped loudly and looked up at him but still Neville just stared at the floor. Harry put a tentative hand on Neville's arm and Neville looked up at Harry…and Harry saw in Neville's eyes such a sorrowful look that he was surprised that he never noticed it before…it was the same expression he, Harry, had when talking about his parents.

"We were laughing as we hugged each other after the battle…my parents looked down at me and smiled and I smiled back…it was the best thing in the world. Then there was a flash of light and when I came to we were all in an alleyway and four Death Eaters…"

Neville's voice died and he wiped tears from his face.

"They had ambushed us…we thought we were safe…they wanted information about where You-Know-Who had fled. Father refused to speak…even under the Cruciatus Curse… Then they turned to Mum…"

He was quiet again for a long time, staring at the wall, reliving the moment second for second…as if it was happening all again. Neville extended his hand towards the invisible scene and a word died on his lips…No. Harry, found that he too was staring at the wall as if he could see it all happening too and also found that he could sense Neville's pain and anguish…like his own.

""Is this your lovely wife?" one of them had said, his voice muffled by his hood. They grabbed her, I cried out…

"Leave her alone!"

They turned their attention to me and laughed…

"What can you do, child?" said a woman's harsh voice while she pushed me away as the man who held my mother caressed my Mum's face. Then he kissed her, my father let out a growl. The man turned to him and laughed… 

"So she is yours…_Crucio_!" Mum started to twitch.

They asked question after question of each of them. Still, they both refused to say anything. The Death Eaters had forgotten about me but I just stood there unable to do anything…unable to act…unable to cry out into the dark night…unable to move…frozen by fear and what I was seeing before me. My Father and Mum twitching down on the ground and Death Eaters laughing as they enjoyed the torture they were inflicting. It was more then I could bear…I fainted. When I came to the Death Eaters were still there torturing them. I was sparred, if you could call it that. After they were through they all Disapparated. I saw one linger for a while; looking back at the scene and then without a word he too vanished leaving me sobbing. I can still hear my cries echoing off the walls and down the dark alleyway. I just lay there crying helplessly, wishing it were all a bad dream…a nightmare. That I would wake up and it would all be a jest. That father would jump up and say "boo" and Mum would laugh her musical laugh. When it didn't happen and after I had cried myself hoarse, I turned my face towards my parents…their bodies were both lying in a heap, near one another, not moving and Mum's face was staring vacantly towards me. I cried out and quickly put my face into the snow as the tears began anew."

Harry found that he was crying and shaking his head in disbelief. 

"I heard footsteps nearby and several witches and wizards began to arrive all over the scene. Aurors that Father had worked with as well as others who were not Aurors but had special jobs as spies or special agents for the Ministry. I watched them looking over then scene and to my parents. An Auror with a sad look on his face shook his head at another witch who put her hand to her mouth and began to cry. He comforted her and then took her and my parents and Disapparated from the site. I whimpered and about five people turned around and looked shocked to see me still alive…I was sure that my parents were dead. One of the people was a man with a scared face, a strange wandering eye and a leg missing, he was walking around on crutches and he looked very pained either by the scene or his own condition I didn't know. I looked away from him; he was scary to look at. Another man was a young man much younger then the first, tired and pale…in shabby robes with dark circles under his eyes. Then there were two people that I don't remember at all and a pale, sallow faced man, the same age about as the shabby robed wizard, but with an angry look on his face as he brushed greasy hair out of his face."

Neville shuddered.

"The first man, the one without the leg made a move towards me but the shabby robed wizard put a hand on his arm to stop him and then made to walk towards me.

"Lupin." the greasy haired wizard said in an almost deadly whisper as he put a restraining hand on the shabby wizard's shoulder.

"Severus, I'll take care of this." Replied the shabby wizard shaking the hand from his shoulder and giving the greasy haired wizard a not-so-trusting glare. "If Moody wants me too" the shabby wizard gave the one legged man a look, a pleading look.

"Let, Remus take care of the boy." He replied as he slapped the greasy haired wizard on the back and gave me a weak smile. I noticed the tears in his eyes and wondered how well he knew my parents. 

I vaguely heard him say something about the shabby wizard having a way with children who had suffered as they turned away from me. He also said something that sounded like let's mourn our loss with the others, Severus. If there was a reply I didn't hear it as my mind was focused on the shabby wizard before me who had knelt down on the ground a little ways away from me. He smiled a tired smile…he too had been weeping.

"Neville" he said quietly, his voice betraying a sorrow that I felt too.

I looked towards him. 

"I'm Remus…I'm here to help you Neville." I watched as he carefully extended his hand towards me. He smiled again and I smiled tentatively back. Then I took his hand, quickly before I could change my mind about the pale, tired, shabby wizard before me. He pulled me up, a smile on his face a little. 

"Where are my parents…are they dead?" I asked not wondering what the answer would be…knowing that the answer would be yes. His eyes darkened in grief and he kneeled down to be face to face with me. 

"Your parents, Neville" he said in a non condescending tone "Your parents have been taken to St. Mungo's for…treatment" I shuddered and looked down at the snow, an exploded snowball was near my foot and I began to cry…they weren't dead…"It was the Crutiatus Curse…the torture curse that was used on them." They were still alive I thought and I would have them back soon after their treatment was over. I looked up at Remus a tear in my eye. 

"Can I see them?" 

He shook his head sadly. "Not right now Neville. I want you to come with me for now""

Neville shuddered again and Harry was sure that he was going to stop talking this time. But, he continued.

"I removed my hand from his and turned to the spot where my parents had been. I saw a sparkle of light on the ground and ran to it, landing in a heap by it. I dug in the snow a little and removed my Mum's silver necklace…an oval locket that she always wore. My bottom lip trembled as I opened the locket and saw their faces staring happily up at me. It was a painting of them shortly after I was born. They both looked to the baby in Mum's arms and smiled, it was I. Then they looked up again and smiled at me, their eyes alight with love. My bottom lip trembled as I watched them. I looked at myself in the painting; I was squirming in Mum's arms. She smiled, looked down at me and kissed me on the forehead. Father did as well. I sobbed as I held the locket. I could swear I felt their lips now brushing against my forehead.

"Neville" 

It was Remus again, breaking through my haze. I turned as saw he was standing right next to me, tears in his eyes too. I held up the locket for him too see and I noticed that he shrinked away from it a little before taking it carefully in his hand, a flash of pain on his face as he did so.

"Let's go. We both need to rest. We'll see you're parents tomorrow if they are ready."

I rose hesitantly and taking Remus outstretched hand we Disapparated into the bedroom of a small house. He handed me a potion that was on the table by the bed and I drank it…then there was only darkness. I don't' remember even falling asleep but it was a peaceful and happy sleep. I was walking hand in hand with my parents. It was a sunny day, a warm day a perfect day. I was just happy to be with them again. I basked in that happiness that was captured in that moment. Then Mum looked down at me and asked "Whose little boy I was" and Father said, "We had better find you parents" I tried to shout, "You are my parents!!"but they didn't hear and I woke up in a sweat with Remus sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at me a concerned and sorrowful expression on his pale face. He rose and walked across the room towards another table, this one had a bowl and a cloth on it. I watched him and I noticed for the first time a few things about the room. Though it was small it was neatly furnished and a fireplace was alight with a warm and welcoming fire.

"You'll be okay, Neville." Remus said quietly as he returned to the bed. "It's mostly shock…both mental and physical."

I watched as he dropped the cloth into the bowl and wring it out then place it on my forehead. He looked at me with a penetrating eye then rose.

"Your Gran will be here in the morning to take you home" 

He lowered his head and sighed heavily. Then he took something from his pocket and handed it to me. It was a pewter lion that moved. I was fixated by its beauty and complexity.

"It is…was my Mum's favorite piece, he said heavily. 

I looked up at him he smiled weakly then left the room without another word. I looked back at the lion and then across at the mantel on the fireplace where another pewter piece was. I got up from the bed and walked towards the fireplace to look at it. This one moved too and it depicted a wolf, a dog, a rat and a stag running across the grounds at Hogwarts."

Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs thought Harry. He wondered what became of the one his father had. He didn't know why he wondered this, but for some reason he felt sure that there was one of these given to his father.

"I looked closely at the piece and wondered about it, I hesitantly touched it and the metal felt cold on my fingers. I turned away from the fireplace and looked around the room and noticed other items, drawings, paintings and sketches. All of them moved too and they were wonderful…they were beyond wonderful…they were happy scenes…a simple landscape where trees waved in the breeze. A lake that shimmered in the afternoon sun. A wonderful rendition of Hogwarts, complete with students walking the grounds and the giant squid flicking its tentacles out of the water in the lake. They were all so…great…so simple…so perfect.

"Do you like them?"

Remus had caught me off guard moving into he room with an uncanny silence that most people didn't have. I nodded my head and made to walk away from the pictures, but Remus nodded that I could continue to look at them, so I did. There was something familiar about the style, as I looked at the painting and then to the sketches of people. As I looked, my eye caught a glint of silver nearby and I turned to see my Mum's locket sitting on the table. I wondered why I hadn't seen it there before. I took it in my hand and opened it and looked at the portrait within. With an intake of breath I realized why the style was so familiar. Remus had painted this portrait, the one within Mum's locket. I looked from the other sketches to the portrait in the locket and saw his glyph in the right hand corner of the painting, it was shinning iridescently. 

"Yes, I drew them. I was the first person they came too. I was honored," 

Remus was quiet for a while, as he looked down at the portrait in the locket.

"I have three of these type of locket paintings. Yours there. Another that I did for my parents when I was very young that doesn't move. Then…then one that I never got to give."

He took out two lockets, not silver, from a pocket within his robes. One contained a non- moving portrait, drawn by a young hand, but still excellent. It was of a man with bright blue eyes and a beautiful woman with auburn hair and lavender eyes. They held a child, looking down at him lovingly.

"It was a little strange to draw myself as a baby when I was ten. My Father died long ago…Voldemort. My Mum…my Mum just died a few weeks ago."

"I'm sorry," I said.

Now I knew why at the time I felt a kinship to him. He too had lost his parents.

"This is the other locket. It's finished but, I was never able to give it to my friends."

He opened the locket and I saw a man with black untidy hair and glasses and by his side and being held by him was a beautiful, red haired woman with bright green eyes. They were laughing and cradleing a baby in their arms. The baby opened its eyes and it was like looking at his Mum but with his father's face. They both looked down lovingly at the child and kissed him."

Harry found that he was crying again. It was, of course, his family…as they should've been. Neville continued to talk as Harry wondered if Professor Lupin still had the locket.

"Remus looked at me, a sorrow in his eyes.

"They were friends of mine…good friends. Voldemort took them too."

Remus walked to the fireplace and caressed the pewter statue. His eyes unfocused as he stared into the flames in the fireplace. He then placed the locket beside the statue. 

"They were the only ones who understood me. Them and Padfoot and Wormtail. They accepted me."

He shook his head and turned to look at me a fierce gleam in his eyes to match the fire's light.

"Voldemort is defeated now, even if his Death Eaters still run free. They won't for long. His power separated loves, friends and families."

Then he smiled and walked towards me. 

"Your Gran will be here in the morning. She'll take you to see your parents. I have an assignment that will take me away from here. I wish that there was more I could do."

I nodded mutely then for reasons unknown to me I ran to him and hugged him crying and crying and muttering inaudible words that even I didn't understand. Remus, talked, saying words that I didn't really hear except for the phrase "sorrow shared is sorrow halved." Mum had used to say that too. I cried harder as I thought about my parents, I was afraid of what I would find when I visited them. Secretly, I didn't want to see them, I was too afraid of what they might say.

"You'll make them proud of you someday Neville, I promises you. Things will get better and our paths will cross again in the future."

I looked up at Remus and felt a relief coming over me. I smiled and he smiled back and then I went back to my bed and fell instantly asleep. The next day rose and I found my Gran sitting next to me, her eyes red-rimmed. She saw me awake and pulled me into a sobbing hug saying "Oh, Neville" over and over again. I saw Remus in the doorway past Gran, he smiled, waved then Disapparated. I closed my eyes and clenched my Mum's locket harder."

Harry wished for his Mum's locket…it would be another thing that would connect him to his lost parents. Something more personal then photographs…something that was meant to be for his parents.

"I still have it," said Neville as he removed the locket from his pocket and opened it for Harry to see. 

Then Dumbledore's words came back to Harry.

"You think the dead we have loved ever truly leave us? You think that we don't recall them more clearly then ever in times of great trouble?"

Harry smiled a little.

"It's true what Dumbledore says that their love never really leaves us no matter what. It doesn't keep us from wishing that things were different, that things should be as they are not, but it helps…it helps."

Harry looked at Neville a little shocked that he had been thinking the same thing. Then he looked skyward, as he thought about his parents and smiled.

"Thank you Neville."

Neville smiled and rose from the bed and went to look out of the window. He shuddered and looked down below at the school grounds. Harry rose from the bed and joined Neville at the window, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder. Neville turned and smiled. It was a cloudless night and the stars shown brightly. Harry looked up at the moon and saw an owl coming towards the window. Neville and him exchanged glances then Harry quickly threw open the window. It was a large barn owl that flew in; it carried a letter addressed to Harry from Sirius. Harry quickly opened it and read, Neville did as well having heard from Harry about Sirius' innocence…

Dear Harry,

I hope this finds you well. Remus and I are working on something that I can't tell you about right now. I just wanted you to know we're okay.

Sirius

P. S. Remus, has enclosed something for you. I don't know what, he said it was personal.

Harry opened another envelope and out fell a flash of silver and the cold feel of metal slipped into Harry's hand. There was a gasp from Neville. He read the note.

Dear Harry,

I've kept this for a long time. I think it's time to return it to its rightful owner. Keep it knowing that it should've went to your parents.Good luck and keep well.

Remus

Harry looked into his hand and saw a pewter locket, engraved with the Potter family crest. Two rampant lions with a sword and scales of justice in between them. With trembling hands Harry opened it. He saw his parents and himself in the portrait it held. He turned to Neville and saw him nod and smile, then Neville returned to his bed. 

Harry looked down at his parents; his Mum's green eyes were alight with happiness as she looked from his Father to their son. He began to cry as he touched the portrait and wondered what it would be like to have them with him again. His Father, smiled up at him and so did his Mum as they cradled the baby in their arms. Then the baby opened his eyes and it was like seeing his Mum with his Father's face. 

Harry touched the portrait again and began to cry harder as he closed the locket and held it to his heart and he looked skyward at the stars. He wondered if his parents were watching over him. He wiped away his tears and smiled. Sorrow shared is sorrow halved he thought.

He called Hogwarts his home. Ron, Hermione and Neville were his friends but this locket held his family. 

A/N: Well, there is not much to say about this fic. It was suppose to be a Harry fic but somehow it turned into a Neville fic too and a Remus fic too. Oh well. The characters belong to J. K. Rowling. Please read and Review.


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